His life experience motivated Assemblyman Mark Gonzalez to get involved in politics

State Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez (D-54) spent some quality time at the Christmas party of the Lou Costello Senior Center in Boyle Heights last week with dozens of guests. He joked around with them and explained what his role was as many of the guests didn’t know what an assemblymember does.

“We represent our community in passing laws and legislation, securing capital funds or dollars that go toward nonprofits, to CalEITC, food bank programs and more,” Gonzales said during the event. 

Last month, Gonzalez won the Assembly District 54 seat with 12,000 votes over John Yi, executive director of Los Angeles Walks, a pedestrian advocacy group. District 54 includes areas from Montebello and Commerce to Chinatown, Koreatown and Echo Park. Gonzalez is no stranger to the assembly’s work, as he worked for nearly two decades with former assemblymembers Anthony Portantino, John Perez and Miguel Santiago. 

Gonzalez was born in McAllen Texas but moved at a very young age to Los Angeles with his mother, who was a domestic violence survivor. They experienced extreme poverty and lived in Section 8 housing.

“I was 10 and forced to grow up very quickly,” he remembered.

He collected cans to recycle or sold chocolates to make some cash. Nonetheless, he was always committed in school and willing to help his community even when he was the one needing the help himself. Although Gonzalez was the president of his high school,  he knew very little about the real political spectrum. One day, then-Congressmember Xavier Becerra visited his high school, sparking his curiosity of wanting to learn how the government works. 

“Just understanding that you can talk to somebody who makes policy decisions that affect your daily life was interesting,” said Gonzalez. 

Since then, he has become more involved in politics, especially the Democratic Party. Gonzalez followed the presidential race especially in 2004, when George Bush got reelected and in 2005 when Antonio Villaraigosa was voted in as Los Angeles Mayor.

One of Gonzalez’ first jobs was with former Assemblymember Anthony Portantino, who represented portions of San Fernando and San Gabriel Valleys, where Gonzalez lived.

There he learned how the unemployment process worked, how to provide CalFresh to people in need, and how to help people access the DMV.

He eventually worked as a case worker, a field representative, a senior field representative with Perez and a district director with Santiago.

“I know this area block by block, issues culturally and things that are polar opposite of each other,” he said.

Priorities as assemblymember

Assembly District 54 is the fifth poorest district in the state, with 80% renters and it’s one of the most multicultural, multi-faceted districts in the state. 

Gonzalez said that it is vital to write policies that will create long-lasting effects. He gave as an example housing, saying that when new developments are finished, they usually accept new tenants by a lottery system that includes people from many areas. The assemblymember said it would be good if policy existed where there is a local component where people from that specific area have priority to the housing project.

 He said other issues that affect his district are the digital divide, healthcare costs, public safety, transportation and food insecurity.

“The pandemic really shed a light on what the vulnerabilities were,” he said. 

Gonzalez said former Assemblyman Santiago was very supportive of the anti-poverty tax credits such as CalEITC and its pre-tax VITA programs, and he expects to continue his legacy. 

He said his office will also be very vigilant and prepared to respond to the Trump immigration rhetoric. They are already working on the “Know your rights” workshops for undocumented immigrants and their families

“We have heard these stories about ICE being at the park, or at the grocery store, so we have to build a sense of safety and security for people,” he said. 

Assembly District 54 covers six Los Angeles City Council Districts 1, 4, 5, 10, 13 and 14. Gonzalez said that it is vital to contact the councilmembers and work as a team for the betterment of each community. 

He said he expects to work on policies related to anti-Asian hate, street medicine and public safety, and to build more development such as a larger grocery store and laundromat in areas such as Chinatown that don’t have either one.  

Gonzalez assured that for now, it’s taking him a little time to adapt and understand that he is no longer “the guy behind the assemblymember,” that he is the assemblymember. But because he knows the area and its needs very well, he is confident that the work he is planning for the next two years will be successful.